Prevalence of Preoperative Anxiety and Associated Factors in Hallux Valgus Surgery

ABSTRACT Introduction Preoperative anxiety is that which is motivated by the emotional and physical stressors inherent in a surgical intervention. The aim of this study was to assess preoperative anxiety as well as the associated sociodemographic and surgical factors in the context of a common foot surgery procedure, such as surgery for the correction of hallux valgus. Methods A cross‐sectional study was conducted with a total of 80 patients using the Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale (APAIS) during the preoperative consultation to determine the level of anxiety and information among patients undergoing osteoarticular surgery for the correction of hallux valgus. Additionally, a questionnaire was used to gather information on other variables such as age, gender, type of surgery, and surgical history. Results 36.3% of the participants experienced preoperative anxiety. Patients undergoing minimally invasive surgery had lower levels of preoperative anxiety compared to those undergoing conventional surgery ( p = 0.006). 81.3% of the patients requested additional information about the surgical procedure, which was correlated with the level of anxiety with patients who requested additional information being 5.57 times more likely to experience preoperative anxiety ( p = 0.034). There were no significant differences in anxiety levels between men and women. Conclusions The prevalence of preoperative anxiety and the demand for information were high among the participants in this study. The patient’s demand for information is a predictive factor of preoperative anxiety. Other factors, such as knowing the surgeon or having undergone previous surgery, acted as protective factors against preoperative anxiety.